Register for hotels or clubs



No. 623,0I8. PatentedApr. Il, |899.A

` C. F. HOFFMAN. REGISTER FOR HOTELS 0R CLUBS.

(Application led Feb. 9, 1898.)

2 Sheets-Sheet l.

(No Model.)

No. 623mg. L

c. F. HUFFMAN.

REGISTER FOR HOTELS 0B CLUBS.

- Y (Application led Feb, 9, 1898.)

Patented Apr. Il, |899.

(No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet 2.

'I .'llll "Illu l I lNFTFD STATES PATENT OFFICE.

CASPER F. HOFFMAN, OF REYNOLDSVILLE, PENNSYLVANIA.

REGISTER FOR HOTELS OR CLUBS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 623,018, dated April11, 1899. Application filed February 9,1898. Serial No. 669,682. (Nomodel.)

To all whom it nea/y concern:

Be it knownthat I, CASPER F. HOFFMAN, a citizen of the United States,residing at Reynoldsville, in the county of Jefferson and State ofPennsylvania, have invented a new and useful Register for Hotels orClubs, of

- which the following is a specification.

` My invention relates to a guest or membership register for hotels,clubs, dac., and has for its object to provide a simple and eii'cientconstruction and arrangement of mechanism for carrying and feeding acontinuous record sheet or web properly ruled to suit the par? ticularpurpose for which the register is to be used as in accordance with theplan usually followed in connection with hotel-registers.

A further object of the invention is to provide improved means wherebyasheet or web of which the surface has been completely used 'can bereadily removed from the mechf side wall broken away. Fig. 3 is a planview,

partly broken away.

Fig. 4 is'an inverted plan view. Fig. 5 is a perspective view showingthe casing open and the rolls tilted for the removal of a lled sheet.Fig. 6 is a detail sectional view of a portion of the casing tov showthe ink-well seat.

Similar numerals of reference indicate corresponding parts in all thefigures of the drawings.

Y In a casing 1, having a hinged lid 2, are mounted parallel supply andreceiving rollers 3 and 4, to which are attached opposite ends of acontinuous sheet or web 5, adapted between said rolls to traverse atable 6, said table being preferably of greater length than the intervalbetween the rolls and being provided at its extremities withtransversely-disposed antifriction-rolls 7. This table is supported byatransverse block 8 or its equivalent, which occupies a position betweenand -parallel with the rolls and is carried by a hinged side wall 1a ofthe casing, said wall being held in its normal position by the rabbetededge of the lid or cover 2 when the latter is in its closed position. Inthe construction illustrated said supporting-block is connected with thefolding wall la by means of a suitable -plate 9, arranged parallel withsaid wall and held in place by bracket-pins 10 or their equivalents.This plate is provided at suitable points with bearings, in which aremounted the hubs 11 of gears 12, said hubs being provided with angularsockets 13 for the terminal cross-sectionally'angular trunnions 14 atthe contiguous ends'of the supply and receiving rolls. The oppositetrunnions 14 of said rolls are mounted in bearings in yieldingsupporting-arms 15,`secured to and carried by the block 8 and adapted tobe flexed outwardly to release said trunnions, and thus facilitate theremoval of said rolls when it is desired to replace a filled strip by afresh medium.

lThe above-described means for accomplishing the mounting of the hubs 11upon the hinged-side wall 1f of the casing is preferred, for the reasonthat it provides for the compact arrangement of the hub-operatingdevices hereinafter fully described. It will be understood that theplate 9 is rigidly held by the bracket-pins 10 in a fixed position withrelation to the side wall la, and the hubs 11 are flanged to preventaccidental axial displacement thereof. It is obvious, however, that anyequivalent ofthis construction may be adopted without departing from thespirit of my invention.

The angular trunnions 14, which are arranged at one end of the rolls,are removably seated in the angular bores of the above-inentioned hubsand may be displaced axially, while the spring-arms 15, which arecarried by the other end of the block 8, are suitably engaged with thetrunnions 14 at the other end of the rolls to mai ntain'said rolls intheir operative positions. In order to replace the rolls with a freshsupply of paper, it is simply necessary to fold the wall 1a outwardly todispose the block 8 in a vertical position, and as the guide-rolls 7 areexposed at the ends of the table a strip of paper may be passedthereover and thus arranged upon the table without threading the paperthrough slots in the table or other portion of the structure. In otherwords, by mounting the table upon a lateral folding Wall of the casingand attaching the guide-rolls 7 directly to the end edges of the tablethe application of a supply of paper to the apparatus is facilitated.

Mounted in the interval between the plate 9 and the contiguous foldingwall 1a of the casing is an operating-disk 16, havinga milled peripheryprojecting through a suitable slot 17 in the cover 2, at one side of themain opening of said cover, through which the upper surface of theinscribing medium is exposed. This operating-disk carries a master-gear18, which is adapted to mesh with either of the gears` connected,respectively, Wit-h the'supply and receiving rolls, but the intervalbetween the contiguous portions of the peripheries of said gears 12 isgreater than the diameter of themaster-gear 18.to provide for causingsaid master-gear to lnesh With either of the receiving-gears 12, andthus communicate motion to said receiving-gear Without affectingtheother, except through the tension applied by the rotation of one rollto the strip forming the inscribing medium; Hence the operating disk`has its trunnions 19 mounted to slide in suitable elongated bearings orslides 20, and When it is desired to move the strip in one direction orthe other the operating-disk rst receives a movement longitudinally ofthe casing to cause the master-gear to mesh with the selectedreceivinggear, after which the rotation of the operating-disk willimpart the required linear movement tothe sheet. It will be understoodthat when it is desired to dismount one of the supply or receiving.rolls it is necessary only to raise the lid 2 and fold the Walllaoutwardly,

as indicated in Fig. 5, to expose the yielding supports 15, whereuponthe substitution of an unused for a filled sheet may be accomplishedwith facility.

The casing is preferably provided upon a beveled or chamfered edge 21 atthe upper end of the main opening in the cover With Words indicating thepurposes of the various columns of the exposed portion of the surface ofthe sheet, such as Name, Residence, dre. Also at opposite sides of thecasing and above the strip-exposing opening in the cover are arrangedsuitable ink-Well and pen-Wiper seats 22 and 23, respectively, while inthe cover between said seats is arranged a transparent panel 24,suitable for exposing a name and place card designating the name of thehotel and proprietor or the name of the club to which the registerbelongs. Furthermore, to facilitate turning of the register toaccommodate persons positioned at opposite sides of a desk or counterupon which the register may be located, I preferably employ a base, uponwhich the casing is mounted for horizontal pivotal movement, and in theconstruction illustrated the base consists of a spider 25, having asuitable number of arms adapted to bear terminally upon the surface of adesk or counter and also having a central spindle, upon which the casingis mounted. The under surface of the casing` is fitted With an annularbearing-plate 26, adapted to rest upon the upper surfaces of the armsand prevent rocking or tilting of the casing when in use.'

Various changes in the form, proportion, and the minor details ofconstruction may be resorted to without departing from the spirit orsacrificing any of the advantagesof this invention.

Having described mv invention, what I claim is- 1. A register having acasing provided With a movable lid or cover and an outwardlyfoldingsideWall, in combination With carrying devices for a continuous inscribingmedium, and means for operating said carrying devices, mounted upon thefolding Wall, substantially as specified.

2. A register having its casing provided with an outwardly-folding sideWall and a lid or cover having an interlocking connection With saidWall, to normally secure the same in its operative position, carryingdevices including rolls, means for operating said rolls, and a tableadapted to be traversed bya continuous inscribing medium, all mountedupon and carried by said folding wall, substantially as specified.

3. A register having its casing provided With an outwardly-folding sideWall, supply and receiving rolls for a continuous inscribing mediumremovably seated in sockets on said side Wall, a table carried by thesaid side Wall and adapted to be traversed by an -inscribiug mediumcarried by the rolls, and

yielding supporting-arms engaging trunnions at the opposite ends ofthe-supply and receiving rolls from said movable Wall, substantially asspecified.

4. A register having its easing provided with an outwardly-folding sidewall, a table carried by said side Wall, hubs mounted in bearings uponand carried by the said side Wall and having angular sockets, supply andreeeivin g rolls having cross-sectionally angular trunnions removablyseated in said sockets, and yielding supporting -arms having bearingsfor engaging trunnions at the opposite end of said supply and' receivingrolls, substantially as specified.

5. A register having spaced supply and receiving rolls for carrying acontinuous inscribing medium and a Writing-table adapted to be traversedby the inscribing medium, a peripherally-exposed rotary operating-disk,and connections between the operating-disk and said rolls, saidconnections consisting of elements carried respectively by theoperating-disk and the rolls, and the operating-disk being mounted formovement to cause the engagement of the'element carried thereby With theelement carried by either of said rolls, substantially as specified.

6. A register having spaced supply and re- IOC IIO

IZO

oeiving rolls for carrying a continuous inscribing medium, a tableadapted to be traversed by the inseribing medium, receivinggearsoperatively connected with the trun- -nions of said rolls, and aperipherally-exposed operating-disk connected to a mastergear, saidoperating-disk and inastergear being mounted for rotary and slidingmovement whereby the master-gear is adapted to mesh with either of saidgears, substantially as specified. Y

7. A register having a casing, receivinggears having hubs provided Withangular sockets, supply and receiving rollers having eross-seetionallykangular trunnions removably seated in said sockets, means for detaohablyengaging and-supporting the oppo- CASPER F. HOFFMAN.

Witnesses:

'JAMES IRvING,

D. L.PosTLETHWAIT.

